Brisbane author Melissa Fagan has released her new book What Will Be Worn featuring the fascinating true story of iconic Brisbane department store McWhirters, exploring the role of fashion and how it connects us.
Brisbane McWhirters is a once-celebrated department store in Fortitude Valley. Melissa Fagan has used this iconic place as the starting point of her new book – a remarkable exploration of her mother and grandmother’s lives, and a poignant reminder of the ways in which retail stores and fashion have connected women’s lives across decades.
Behind the dusty shop counters of an Art Deco treasure, Fagan discovers both what has been lost and continues to shine. Ultimately this tender exploration of self and family speaks of the ways in which life so often surprises us and of how the legacies of others can truly enrich our own relationships and lives. Sometimes it seems the most invaluable stories can be found in the unlikeliest of corners. What Will Be Worn is a fascinating insight into the history behind one of Australia’s most iconic department stores, complete with an array of photos that help share the story.
Melissa Fagan is a writer and editor based in Brisbane, where she also teaches and lectures in creative writing courses at the The University of Queensland and Queensland University of Technology. Her fiction and nonfiction have been published in Overland, Kill Your Darlings, Meanjin, QWeekend, and others. In 2018 she started a practice-led PhD in travel writing with Curtin University and the University of Aberdeen.
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